


Yin And Yang - Izuota

by Jimothy_Kirigiri



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Dangan Ronpa 3: The End of 希望ヶ峰学園 | The End of Kibougamine Gakuen | End of Hope's Peak High School
Genre: Adorable, Animation, Comfort, Despair, Emotions, Falling In Love, Fluff, I LVOE THEM, In Love, Izuota, Izuru is just, Kamukura Izuru Has Feelings, Love, M/M, Mitarai Ryota Deserves The Best, Mutual Pining, a little hurt/comfort, based off of headcannons, i did math for this, novellette, soft for ryota
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-15
Updated: 2020-07-15
Packaged: 2021-03-04 22:47:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,136
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25274152
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jimothy_Kirigiri/pseuds/Jimothy_Kirigiri
Summary: This is just 20 or so pages of Izuru x Ryota. If you want some serotonin, read up!!CREDIT TO THE HCS AND THE ENTIRE STORY IDEA TO taka__ishimaru ON INSTAGRAM!!!!please read
Relationships: Kamukura Izuru/Mitarai Ryota
Comments: 5
Kudos: 36





	Yin And Yang - Izuota

**Author's Note:**

> Think of this taking place during the Despair Arc anime, after the time of the student council killing game and before Ryota runs away. Like I said, all credit is to taka__ishimaru on instagram, with their adorable headcannons for them! ^^

The room was quiet apart fro m the soft whispers and strokes of a digital pen across a screen. Izuru sat with one leg up on the bed, looking at Ryota. He couldn’t understand why Junko liked the animator so much. To him, Mitarai was boring. He worried frequently over things out of his control and Kamukura could just not understand why. A very soft exhale drew his attention as he turned his head to look at Ryota. 

“No… No, this isn’t right- Why won’t this go right?” The small animator whispered, his voice starting to raise, before he turned his head to face Izuru. He let out a squeak and his eyes turned wide as he made eye contact, looking at those red eyes burning into his soul. “S-sorry-” He mumbled, facing away and trying to draw again, deeply terrified he had offended Izuru. The man was a god among men and he probably hated Ryota, didn’t he? Ryota could feel panic rising in his chest. He didn’t even notice Izuru silently stand up and slink over to Ryota, long hair falling across his shoulders and eyes. Izuru moved it out of his face, standing behind Ryota.

He gazed down at the screen, where Mitarai’s animation was open as he edited it, making sure it was perfectly smooth. Ryota snapped out of his hazy panic when he noticed some of that long black hair brush against his back and he jumped out of his skin, almost falling from his chair. Izuru, of course, caught him with ease, his face betraying nothing as he corrected Ryota.

“Why are you doing that?” Izuru spoke steadily and Ryota was half convinced it was the first time he had heard the man talk for the entirety of the time they had been together. Junko had left, taking her little servants to spread despair and had left Izuru and Mitarai to room together.

“Doing-.. Doing wh-what?” Ryota asked, just to clarify, swallowing nervously, his throat dry. 

“Overreacting.” Izuru replied to him bluntly. “Are you dissatisfied with your work? Although, that would never be a decent reason to have such an… Emotional reaction.” Izuru’s voice was soft and Ryota was a little offended by his words.

“I-I just… i don’t know, okay? Sometimes when I don’t get something right I freak out a bi-bit-!” Ryota’s voice cracked in his sentence as his breathing picked up. 

“You are freaking out due to making one mistake? The expectations you have for yourself are very high, yet you do not believe you can achieve them. Why do you do that?” The Ultimate Hope questioned, not taking his eyes off of Ryota, who seemed to curl in on himself. The words felt like they were cutting through him.

“I don’t know!! I just- I have to make this perfect so I can help people!!” Ryota burst out, before freezing. He had never snapped or shouted at Kamukura before. Not even Junko did. Oh, god, what had he done..?

Izuru looked at him, mouth set in a straight line as he plucked out the digital pen from Ryota’s sweaty grasp, redrew the line flawless on his first go and put it back. Without another word, the man stood up straight and went back to his perch on the bed. Ryota watched him go through tired eyes. Was… he mad? It was impossible for him to tell, and Ryota thought he was pretty good with telling expressions. Licking his chapped and dry lips, he faced back to his workbench and just decided to keep going throughout the night. 

His next panic attack came about for him and swallowed him whole at around 6am, four hours later. He had to finish this animation for Junko and who knows what she would do to him if he didn’t. But his hands, they wouldn’t stop shaking. The edges of his vision were black and his head throbbed in pain as he gasped softly. He could hear his thoughts, but they were muddled and confused and all he could think of was failing and-

“Mitarai. Can you hear me?” a voice cut through his thoughts and he looked around wildly to see where it came from. Izuru was on the bed still, watching him. 

“Wh-what…?” Ryota managed to choke out, a few long moments after he realised that the man had asked a question and he nodded. 

“Can you speak?” The Ultimate Hope asked him and he croaked out a “Y-yeah…” He must’ve sounded pitiful and stupid, so weak and-

“What are five things you can see?” Izuru spoke to him, his voice soft but audible. Ryota darted his eyes around as he registered the question. “U-uhm.. You, the b-bed… the floor.. My screen and… Desk?” He said, counting off each thing as he said it.

Izuru nodded slowly. “What are four things you can hear?”

Mitarai willed himself to slow down his breathing so he could hear his surroundings better. “Your voice… uhm.. Me breathing…” He shut his eyes. “Rain. And, my chair.” His chair has been squeaking across the ground from his heavy breathing, 

“Three things you can feel around you.” Kamukura very slowly got up, starting to approach him, but Ryota didn’t notice as he felt around. Ryota raised one hand to fiddle with the cuffs of his jacket. “My jacket… The desk-” He bumped his hand against the wooden surface. When he couldn’t think of anything else, his hands trailing up to his hair, about to pull, before feeling the strands.

“Hair.” 

“Good.” Izuru was crouched by Mitarai now. “Two things you can smell.” 

Ryota tried his best to sniff out things around him. “Leftover burnt ramen and… I-I don’t know, air?!”

“That’s fine. Now, lastly, what is one thing you can taste.” 

Ryota’s tongue darted out to wet his lips, tasting what was in his mouth. “...leftover burnt ramen.” He mumbled again, finally facing Izuru, who was closer than he expected, but he didn’t jump away. 

It took Mitarai a moment to realise that he wasn’t panicking anymore. “How.. How did you-”

“Psychology and therapy are in my range of talents.” The man answered, standing up. “What was the reason for your panic attack?” He asked, staring down Ryota. He looked back at his screen, which had dimmed a tiny bit due to being left on idle.

“Just.. Scared that I can’t finish this in time..” 

“That’s… Disappointing.”

“I know-” Ryota started to admit, hurt that Izuru was so blunt.

“You would have no reason to be so upset. You are the Ultimate Animator and would make a work of art that is perfect in the amount of time Enoshima has given you.” Kamukura continued and Ryota flicked his eyes to watch the red-eyed male talk. Was that.. True? Did Izuru really think that.? 

“O-oh.” Ryota muttered out dumbly. Izuru moved forward swiftly, standing next to Mitarai. It didn’t startle him, surprisingly. He could feel Izuru’s body heat against him as the man leaned forward, his hair draping over Ryota’s back. “You have already finished it.” The man commented as he looked through the frames. 

“Well, yeah, but it could be better-” Ryota started to protest, when Izuru glanced at him. “Could it? I would expect you to have already made it to the best of your abilities. You should move onto your next task instead of dwelling on it. You do that a lot. Staying stuck to old mistakes even when no one else cares except you. It’s… Irregular.” 

Was that Izuru’s way of saying that he shouldn’t panic as much over things he’s done wrong? It must be, Ryota thought to himself.

“..O-okay.” Mitarai finally nodded, saving the file and opening a new one. Izuru leaned back up and Ryota let out a breath when he moved back. It did not go unnoticed by Kamukura.

“Do you not enjoy my presence?”

“I-I do-! I just… you’re… Uh…”

Ryota trailed off, at a loss for words.

“Overwhelming…?” 

He finally managed, not knowing if that was the right word choice.

“I see. I apologize.” Izuru said steely after a moment and returned back to his bed. Ryota watched him move and stared as the long haired man laid down on the bed and shut his eyes, most likely falling asleep. The tired Ultimate blinked, remembering that he should get on with his work. 

Izuru woke up an hour later to see Ryota asleep on his desk, head against the desk, his back curled over. That would be very uncomfortable when he woke up. Mitarai must’ve fallen asleep while working. Izuru got up and saved the file, pulling the pen out of Mitarai’s hand. The sleeping figure must’ve noticed subconsciously, as his fingers clenched around nothing but air. 

Izuru knew that Ryota hadn’t slept for a while and decided that he needed the most amount of sleep and to not be disturbed, so he left the dozing Mitarai like that and made himself some food. Just a basic dish of lasagna. He ate it at the table, not caring for the taste. For a normal person, the food would match even that of the Ultimate Cook’s, but to Izuru it tasted rather bland and boring.

After a few hours of doing nothing, as nothing caught his attention apart from the sleeping form of Ryota, the animator woke up, gasping softly in pain as his back cracked when he sat up. “Ow..” He mumbled, rubbing his head and blinking. His stomach rumbled as the smell of lasagna came across his nose and he realised he hadn’t eaten for a while. When was the last time he took a shower..? Ew, gross…

He decided that he would eat and then take a shower before getting back to work. Izuru was laying on his bed, perfectly still. Ryota peered over him, as it looked like he was asleep. When Izuru’s red eyes blinked open and looked at him, he backed away. “Oh- sorry if I woke you-”

“I was not resting.” Kamukura answered. Mitarai stood there awkwardly, before hurrying off to the kitchen. Izuru watched him with red eyes. He thought it was … Unique, how the animator acted. He hadn’t seen anything like this before, but then again, nothing had caught his attention for long enough. Not even Junko and her wild way of thinking interested him as much as this small animator. He became infatuated with him. The more he watched, the more he believed he needed to protect him. Ryota Mitarai was.. Interesting…? Izuru didn’t think that was right.

It had been a few days and Izuru was helping Ryota with his panic attacks, with his anxieties and helping him take care of himself. The last part was always what made Izuru rather… Protective. 

“Ow-!” Ryota gasped out as he dropped his pen, clutching his hand as the muscle spasmed in pain. Izuru silently walked over. He saw that Ryota was having a muscle cramp in his hand and noticed the other man holding back tears. It must be hurting him a lot. Izuru gently took the animator’s hands in his own, holding it close. Heat or cold could help a muscle cramp, and Izuru’s body temperature was always warm. Ryota let out a soft sigh of relief, biting his lip, the dull pain slowly fading away. He opened his eyes, to see darkness in front of him, something in front of him. He pulled back sharply and realised that he had buried his head in Izuru’s chest without even realising.

Izuru looked down at him. If Ryota hadn’t known better, the look in his eyes, although miniscule, reminded him of amusement. 

“Were you comfortable there?” Izuru asked after a few moments and Ryota blushed softly across his cheeks, looking away and trying to focus on his glowing screen.

“S-sorry…” 

Izuru wanted to say that he had no reason to say sorry. Him repeating the apology was predictable and annoyed Izuru to a degree. He just moved back, interested in the conversation any further. Ryota just looked down, before continuing. 

As Izuru helped him more and more, he grew increasingly protective. He didn’t do anything about it. If his predictions were correct, which they always were, it would lead to a more interesting outcome. Ryota also changed slightly, becoming more comfortable with Izuru. 

Izuru, having no better to do, picked up on all of Ryota’s habits. He would push through for hours at a time, animating. He did not take care of himself. 

After three hours of watching Ryota slave and creating animations, he stood up. “You need to take a break.” 

Ryota barely sent a glance his way, too invested in his work. “I can’t.” Was all he replied. Izuru stared him down. He wouldn’t get anywhere with this. Ryota would not stop working simply because he told him to. 

Analyzing Mitarai's personality, Izuru knew he was polite and nice- Too nice. It got him hurt more often than not. He could use that to his advantage. Heading to the kitchen, Izuru made a simple dish, Sweet and Sour Chicken. Ryota found himself becoming distracted with the smell, but forced himself to keep working. After Izuru had prepared the disk, he put the meal on the plate.

Lifting the plate with one hand, he walked over to the Ultimate Animator. 

“Ryota. I made some food.”

“I-It looks good…” He tried to comment, turning his gaze to look at Kamukura. Big mistake. The man held out the food to him, a silent offering. Ryota couldn’t help but take it. 

“Thank you..” 

He wanted to focus on his work, but he couldn’t turn down Izuru. It wasn’t that he was scared of the man being angry, he was scared of disappointing him. 

Ryota ate a few bites of the chicken, before starting to work again, putting the plate by the side of his desk. Izuru picked it up and took it to the kitchen, putting it in the fridge so Ryota could finish it later. 

Izuru wanted to know more about Ryota. He was the only thing in his life that Izuru could consider interesting, apart from his favourite mode of transportation, boats. Holy Shit He Loves Boats, as they were unpredictable and interesting. Ryota was interesting and unpredictable in a way that Izuru couldn’t understand. It was unpredictable for why his chest felt warm when Ryota looked over at him with a tired smile. He wanted to learn more on why he felt like that. 

After a few days of caring for Ryota, which didn’t seem like a long time, but considering the fact that neither of them went out and they spent time with each other the whole day, it was, Izuru deducted that these feelings were due to the fact that he and Ryota had formed a close bond. 

He was actually doing something with his talents. Helping the person who was closest to him. And unlike other things, this didn’t feel pointless. It was paying off. Ryota’s mental and physical state was showing an improvement. 

Izuru pondered on these thoughts, before he noticed Mitarai’s head dip down, starting to nod off, before he pinched himself awake to keep working. 

“The more you put off resting, the more mistakes you will make.” Izuru spoke up after a few minutes of watching Ryota. The animator looked back. “I.. I can’t sleep.. I gotta...gotta keep drawing…” 

Izuru knew that either Ryota would pass out on his desk and wake with back pain tomorrow, or down a collection of unhealthy energy drinks if he didn’t intervene. Izuru collected blankets from Ryota’s bed, which had gone completely unused. He draped them around Ryota’s shoulders, covering him in it and warming him up. The animator shuddered, his eyes shutting, before they snapped open as he tried to concentrate.

Ultimate Masseuse Talent came to control as he gently started to rub his fingers in the stiff, tense spots of Ryota’s back. The man who was working gasped quietly, making a small sound that would’ve been embarrassing for sure, if he wasn’t as tired as he was. Izuru did not care for it and pressed against tense spots, rubbing his shoulders as the tension seeped out. 

Ryota’s digital drawing pen soon was placed on the desk as Ryota leaned back against his hands. They felt warm on his back and made him feel… Sleepy…

Izuru noticed Ryota’s slowed movements and deduced that the man was getting more tired. He pulled away, pretending to not notice the little whine and lifted up Ryota. He was light. Too light. It sent a flash of emotion through Izuru. Concern? Izuru held him in a bridal style, as that was the easiest way to carry the animator without disturbing him too much. 

Ryota’s hand searched for something to hold. The tie that once belonged to a man named \H̴a̵j̷i̵m̷e̵ ̶H̸i̷n̵a̶t̵a̸- hung from his collar and that was what the animator’s hand grasped and held tightly. As he laid Ryota down on the bed, he had to lean down. The animator would not let it go. Izuru could easily pull it off or even rip it if he wanted to, but he didn’t. Ryota seemed to be comforted by holding something in his hand.

Izuru knew that this must’ve been a comfort for Ryota, holding something, so he shifted Ryota over and laid down next to him. The animator laid on his side, his hand draped over Izuru’s chest. 

That would cause wrinkles in it. It’s not like he cared about that. Mitarai moved, shifting his nose to nuzzle against Izuru’s arm. Some of his hair was across Mitarai’s face. He liked it long because sometimes in the wind, it would move everywhere. Enoshima enjoyed it too, messing it up or braiding it. Izuru didn’t care. It was boring.

A soft sleepy noise drew his attention back to the man sleeping next to him. Perhaps it would be better if the two of them slept in unison. Izuru let his eyes drift close, choosing when to fall asleep. He exhaled quietly and drifted into darkness. He didn’t have dreams. He never remembered having a single dream and that wouldn’t change that night.

When Ryota woke up, he saw light shining into his eyes. He winced softly and opened them. There was something next to him. He felt hair and warmth and could hear soft breathing. 

There was someone next to him. Focusing his eyes, he glanced around and saw-

Oh. Izuru Kamukura. The Ultimate Hope. Was sleeping next to him. And Ryota was clinging to his tie.

Oh goodness. Ryota’s face heated up. He had been aware for a while that he wasn’t straight, and this definitely confirmed it. Kamukura was just so… Beautiful. Long hair, red eyes, not to mention the time where Ryota walked in on him taking a bath. He swore that he would have a nosebleed like in the anime if it hadn’t been for the almost adorable sight of Izuru playing with toy boats. 

Ryota focused back on his current situation. Here he was, sleeping with Izuru. What had happened last night? He just remembered animating.. And animating.. And then… sleep. He remembered warm hands on his body- Had Izuru held him or something like that? He started to wonder what happened, toying with the tie. The movement must’ve woken the man up, as red eyes blinked open. 

Ryota didn’t notice, focused on playing with the tie. It was only when Izuru moved his free hand that wasn’t wrapped around Ryota to brush hair out of his eyes he noticed.

“O-oh- I’m sorry-” Mitarai quickly said, getting up. He didn’t actually want to move. Izuru’s chest was just the perfect pillow, with his steady heart and precise breathing. It was so calming. Izuru didn’t look phased, instead sitting up and looking at his wrinkled and slightly wet shirt, from Ryota drooling a bit in his sleep. 

“Oh gosh- I’m sorry-” Ryota repeated after noticing. Izuru simply unbuttoned it and let it fall to the bed. Ryota tore his gaze away, face heating up as he scrambled to his tablet to work again, to get his mind off of-

How did Izuru have such a perfect body when Ryota didn’t see him work out? Defined pecs? It made Ryota feel rather self conscious of his skinny self. He decided to just refocus his attention on his anime. It wasn’t fair. 

Izuru quietly ironed his white button-up shirt and put it in the washing machine. He wore a blue, loose shirt that showed most of his collarbone. He sat on the bed, looking at Ryota, who was focused on his work, trying very hard to not get distracted by Izuru. 

“What are you working on?” Izuru found himself saying. He hadn’t bothered to pay attention to what Ryota was doing, but if it drew Ryota’s attention away enough for him to deprive his body of its basic needs, it should be interesting. 

“An- Anime.. Just a short one, but it’s basically about this god and their worshipper and when the god is stuck and weak, the worshipper takes care of them…” Ryota mumbled. He flinched as he felt the slight gust of air when Izuru walked over to him and peered over his shoulder. “I’ve actually almost finished it.. Just adding small details.” 

“Would I be allowed to watch it after it is finished?” Izuru asked. He had heard that the animations Ryota made were emotional, and maybe there was a chance of-

No. That would be boring and predictable. Or… Would not reacting to it be boring and predictable? The whole thing was pointless anyways, with how much effort Ryota put in. It was the one thing he was good at, but still had to try to make it good. 

“I mean.. It’ll probably suck, but I guess..” Ryota nodded, glancing at Izuru, who was still peering over his shoulder. Ryota felt a bit uncomfortable with Izuru watching him, but it didn’t seem he would stop anytime soon, so he just tried to focus on his work and finish.

Izuru didn’t move from his place, apart from his eyes darting from Ryota’s smooth hand, the clips of the anime and Ryota’s face. He had his bottom lip pulled between his teeth, gnawing at it as he concentrated. No wonder his lips were so chapped and ruined, he didn’t take proper care of it. Ryota didn’t put in the effort to care about himself. Izuru understood that, in a way. Although, he didn’t need to. It was pointless and Izuru already knew he was one of the most attractive people to exist, even without bothering to care about his appearance. 

He could easily tell of Ryota's attraction to him. Ryota wasn’t that good at keeping his feelings at bay, or even hiding secrets. If he tried, Izuru would be able to see through the lies with ease. 

“Uhm.. It’s just finished rendering now… Do you wanna watch it?” Ryota asked the man in a small voice. Izuru blinked softly, fixing his gaze to Ryota.

“Yes. I would like to see the result of your talent.” He said. Ryota focused the screen on him. There was no audio apart from the soft music that fit perfectly with the anime.

Izuru watched the story. He found some similarities between himself and the god character and idly wondered if he was the inspiration. A few minutes of watching later, he confirmed this. The story was beautiful. At the softer and more wholesome parts, Izuru felt the corners of his lips quirk up and raised his hand to touch his mouth in surprise. Ryota stared at him, extremely shocked that Izuru had given a small smile. He loved it and blushed faintly.

Izuru carried on watching. His eyebrows furrowed in annoyance when the two characters had to be split. He knew what would happen next. The worshipper character would die, it was obvious. Lo and behold, it happened, taking his own life to sacrifice himself for the god. A small tear gathered in his eye at the scene and the end credits rolled. He raised a hand up and wiped it away. He hadn’t had a tear in his eye. Never- Not since-

“...Oh god-” Ryota was mumbling to himself, wide-eyed. Izuru had watery eyes due to his anime, and he had smiled, and been mad and-

He had shown emotion.

Izuru sat there, thinking about it. Junko wasn’t lying when saying that Ryota’s art was a powerful tool. After all, a picture is worth 10,000 words. In the case of this anime, taking into account how many frames per second Ryota drew singlehandedly, it was 302400000 words. The math was simple in Izuru’s head. 

Ryota, on the other hand, was still panicking. “How did I do this I’m sorry why is this happening what is happeni-”

“Mitarai.”

Izuru’s voice cut through his mind, bringing him off the verge of a panic attack.

“Y-yes….?” Ryota could barely stop the whimper from escaping, fidgeting with the cuffs of his jacket.

“Thank you.” Izuru was shocked. For Ryota, it was noticeable, but barely, since he had spent so much time around Kamukura. The words registered. He had helped Izuru feel emotions. 

He should do it again, because, if he could show emotions with this anime, maybe Ryota could create animations that would help him show more emotions in day to day life! Ryota thought this plan was brilliant and would start working on it as soon as possible. He stammered out a “You’re welcome” to Izuru and opened the new file, muttering under his breath.

Izuru went back to his bed. The emotions that the anime had made him feel… He didn't know. It was like they were behind a shut door. The door had just opened a little bit, showing pathways to emotions. Happiness. Sadness. Anger. Something to feel other than being bored. 

It reminded him of how he felt around Ryota. It was interesting, the way his heart sped up. He knew that this was the yearning, the urge to grow closer with him. He had never experienced these feelings or even thought about having them.

Now that he was actually feeling them… They were different from what he expected. He felt warm inside and he enjoyed Ryota’s presence. He focused his attention on the said man, who was talking about how he was gonna make an anime that could make Izuru feel emotions. 

The smile from earlier came back, thinking of the fact that Ryota would do this for him, putting effort into making something for him. Izuru, now that he thought about it, didn’t know a single person who put lots of their time and effort into making something for him, using their talent. 

Ryota kept working for a few hours. Izuru got up, making some lunch for him and offering it to Mitarai without a word. The animator took it, blushing and facing away, eating quietly. Izuru didn’t comment on it. 

The next day, Ryota was working. Izuru was bored, no surprise there. “Mitarai.” He spoke and Ryota glanced up, very obviously switching tabs. “Huh-?! Yeah?’ 

“Do you want to spend the day together? You need to take a break.”

“Oh.. You wanna hang out with me?”

“That is what I’m implying, yes.” Izuru said. 

Who was Ryota to turn down this gorgeous man in front of him that he had grown close to. “O-okay… Do you wanna like, play a game or something..? I have some video games on my computer!” Ryota suggested. Izuru nodded.

“You enjoy playing games?”

“Well, mainly visual novels and RPGs and stuff, but yeah I really like them- Oh, there’s this cool game called Your Turn To Die, and then there’s a dating sim visual novel horror game called DDLC, oo! And-” Izuru let Ryota go on his rambles about the type of games he liked. Mitarai sounded so fond and excited.

“What’s your favourite game? Mine is probably… hmmm… I like the Yandere Simulator a lot. I don’t have a favourite, but if I did, that’d be it!”

Izuru didn’t even realise that Yandere Simulator was also his favourite game, but when Ryota spoke about it with such excitement, he said, “I think that’s a good game.” 

“Let’s play it!!” The animator said, loading it up and moving so he was sitting on Izuru’s bed. Izuru moved so they were sitting next to each other. They were very close and Ryota blushed due to the closeness. He felt Izuru’s hair against him, trying to keep his hands from shaking. Izuru watched him play the game. 

When he offered to let the Ultimate Hope play, Izuru refused, saying he would get bored and already knew exactly what would happen. Ryota didn’t mind and kept playing. They moved from game to game, Izuru refusing playing the games and letting Ryota have his fun with it. 

By dinnertime, Ryota was sitting with his back against Izuru’s chest and Izuru had his arms around him, gently massaging his legs. Ryota was still flustered by how close they were, when Izuru dipped his head, resting it on Mitarai’s shoulder. His eyes flickered to the side as he watched the long-haired man. He didn’t say anything. 

“Do you want anything in particular for dinner?” Izuru asked after a while.

“Uhm… Not really. Whatever’s your favourite, we can have!” He said. 

“I don’t have a favourite. It’s all boring and pointless. I eat to keep my body healthy, not for pleasure.”

“Oh.” 

“I’ll make us a salad.” Kamukura got up and Ryota couldn’t help but think he said something wrong. Izuru made the food silently, cutting the vegetables quickly and efficiently. It was effortless. Everything came to him naturally, everything except for these feelings he felt stir inside of him whenever he was with Ryota. 

Within minutes the food was prepared. Izuru put it in the bowls as Ryota watched some anime. Izuru noticed it was quite gory and wondered if Ryota liked watching horror.

He put one of the bowls in Ryota’s lap and ate his own salad. Ryota put his laptop down and Izuru reached over, opening up Netflix. He looked through horror movies, wanting to test his theory. He got up one and started to play it so both of them could watch.

It bored Izuru to no end, not even blinking at the jumpscares or the excessive amount of gore. But Ryota? His reaction didn’t really surprise him, per say, as it was only one out of two possible reactions. Izuru didn’t really mind that Ryota was terrified of it. The smaller, once he had finished his food, was jumping where he sat. Izuru moved and lifted the animator onto his lap, wrapping his arms around him. Ryota gasped and blushed softly, unable to keep the smile off his head. 

He felt Izuru rest his chin on his shoulder, watching the movie, although the deeper they got into the movie and the more Ryota jumped, the more it felt like Izuru’s eyes were actually on him. Which was, in fact, true. Kamukura had his crimson eyes trained on Mitarai, watching his reactions to the movie. 

It was interesting, he thought, whenever Ryota buried his face in his chest, trembling and gasping. Kamukura showed no reaction to the film. Ryota soon realised, as he stayed close to Izuru, that his chest was actually pretty big and warm. It made his face flush.

FInally, the movie was over. 

“Th-that was scary..!” Mitarai complained. 

“It was boring.” Izuru commented, looking at Ryota, who glanced away. “Right… I’m gonna.. Gonna get back to animating..” He said, getting out of Izuru’s lap. He felt the cold of the room envelop him almost automatically and involuntarily shivered as he walked over and sat in his seat.

It was like Izuru had been sucking out all of the heat from the room, he was so warm. Ryota sighed softly, wrapping his arms around himself and rubbing them, trying to get the goosebumps go away. He jumped when he felt something land on his shoulders. Izuru gently placed a blanket onto Ryota, who grabbed the corners and wrapped himself up to try and be warmer. 

“Do you want me to turn the heater on?” Asked Izuru, who received a nod as his answer. He moved away from Ryota, fluidly walking to the heater and switching it on. Ryota’s ice-cold fingers warmed up as he drew with his stylus, concentrating on his work. Izuru could see that he was working on an animation called “For Izuru - 15.” 

Izuru knew that this was one of the animations designed to try and bring more reactions out of Izuru. His heart thudded in his chest at the thought of Ryota doing something so sweet for him. He didn’t understand why he felt like this, but he wasn’t objecting. Izuru thought that he was.. Well, broken.

That he couldn’t feel properly.

And now Ryota was showing him that this wasn’t true.

He could feel. He could be sad, and happy, and loving, and angry. Even if it was barely shown, just a miniscule amount. The emotions were there, hidden and locked away. 

Izuru moved some hair out of his face, crimson eyes trained on Ryota’s movements. After a few hours, he got up, cutting some fruit for the animator and put it next to him. When the animator didn’t eat after a few minutes, Izuru delicately took a piece of fruit, placing it by Ryota’s lips. His mouth opened and Izuru pushed it in, hand-feeding the man.

Ryota chewed, and this whole set-up continued until Ryota realised. His eyes widened as he went from shock, to humiliation, to embarrassment, to becoming flustered as his cheeks grew redder.

Izuru simply held up the next piece of fruit. Ryota pushed his wrist away, but Izuru didn’t move an inch. 

“Eat.” He spoke quietly. Mitarai looked at him for a few minutes, before taking the fruit.

“I don’t need you to feed me, Izuru.” He said quietly.

“Then eat the food, Ryota.” He replied steadily, red eyes staring down the animator. A few days ago, Ryota would’ve felt small and threatened, but now… He was used to it. Izuru wasn’t a big, scary dude. He felt silly to have even thought that. Izuru was calm, and kind, and sweet, and-

Made his heart pound whenever he was near.

Invaded his dreams and held him close.

Izuru was-

His.

Ryota’s face turned red as his eyes turned wide. He was in love with Izuru Kamukura. Oh goodness. 

Izuru didn’t move, noticing how Ryota’s face heated up. He could tell the Ultimate was coming to terms with his pretty large crush on Izuru. 

Ryota quickly grabbed the plate and ate the rest of the fruit. Izuru still held his slice. Ryota quickly got up, abruptly stuttering that he had to go to the bathroom and rushed into it. Izuru glanced at the piece of fruit in his hand. He would’ve normally thrown it away. He had no need to eat it, but.. Something in him told him to eat it. Not out of hunger but just… Why not? 

So he ate the last piece with a small smile on his face with the fact that Ryota truly loved him. 

Ryota, meanwhile, was freaking out in the bathroom. He wasn’t having a panic attack, he was just panicking. He had a crush on Izuru Kamukura- Izuru Kamukura, a literal gorgeous, godly being! 

There was no way he stood a chance being with him, yet… Maybe he was just selfish, but Izuru had treated him so well. Maybe he was just being polite…As he had the argument in his head, he realised he had left Izuru with the open project that he had wanted to be a surprise for him.

Ryota ran out again and shut it. Izuru simply looked at him. Mitarai wouldn’t meet his eyes- Those beautiful, red eyes, that sparkled like rubies- Nope nope nope- And he ran back into the bathroom, covering his face. He tried to splash water in his face, resisting the urge to scream quietly. Why was he so freaking hot?!! Ryota thought, bright red. 

Izuru was standing in the same place. He took the plate and walked to the kitchen, washing it up and putting it away. Eventually, after ten minutes, Ryota came back out and refused to look at Izuru, instead, going back to work.

He finished his animations at around 11 at night. Izuru had given him dinner and Ryota was yawning. He felt Izuru’s hands on his shoulders, rubbing gently. His eyes fluttered shut as he relaxed against him, putting down his stylus. He managed to switch off the tablet and tiredly got up and headed to his bed, clutching Izuru’s tie and tugging him along with him. 

Izuru didn’t protest when he was dragged along, nor when Ryota laid down and in the process, pulled him down with him. Ryota curled up. Izuru reached out and moved the blanket so it was covering the both of them.

Ryota stayed close. Izuru laid on the bed, resting as Ryota drifted off to sleep on him, fast asleep. Izuru raised a hand to run through Ryota’s brown, messy and tangled hair. After laying there for a few minutes, or possibly even hours, Izuru shut his eyes. He enjoyed having Ryota close to him and looking after him. He couldn’t remember the last time he felt like this. He felt like a part of him was missing, but couldn’t place his finger on what exactly. He wanted to help Ryota, he wanted to put effort into him. He wanted to keep Ryota close to him, body, mind and soul. 

These thoughts lulled him to sweet unconsciousness as everything grew black.

He awoke by a feeling of something moving. As he opened his eyes, he saw Ryota, clearly having not noticed that he woke up Izuru, trying to escape Izuru’s grasp, when he was the one that snuggled into his arms in the first place.

“Do you want breakfast?” He asked the animator suddenly and Ryota seemed to jump out of his skin, gasping, before looking away. “Ah- crap, I didn’t mean to make you.. But.. You don’t have to make me food-”

“I want to.” His answer surprised the both of them, though one didn’t show any sign of that. Izuru… Genuinely wanted to do something for him. That didn’t seem like him, but the more Ryota thought, the more he realised, wait, maybe Izuru does do that.

He tucked him in at night and cuddled with him. He gave Ryota food and made sure he had fun and didn’t overwork himself.

“Okay..” Ryota nodded, moving out of Izuru’s arms. Red eyes blinked at him, before Izuru got up.

Ryota’s eyebrows shot up as he reached out and took a hold of Izuru’s sleeve.

“Wait!”

Izuru stopped in place, unmoving.

“I...I had something to show you.” There was no going back now. He had finished the animations for Izuru and was desperate to see if he could invoke a reaction from him. 

Izuru slowly turned to face him. He knew exactly what it was that Mitarai wanted to show him. There was a small glimmer of.. Something..in his chest. Was this hope? Was this what he was? Izuru decided he liked the feeling.

Ryota pulled him over to the digital pad, clicking open the video files and folder, simply titled “FOR IZURU”

He clicked through, double tapping the first video. He pulled in headphones and held them out for Kamukura. The Ultimate took them, his expression betraying nothing as he silently placed them on.

The video started.

One after another, videos were played.

Sometimes Izuru only bothered to give a twitch of his finger, other times he had a tear falling down his face without realising. When the last one was done, all Ryota could do was stare at the soft smile on his face, which remained for a few seconds before disappearing. Mitarai’s heart dropped. Had he done something wrong?

Izuru didn’t show a lot of emotion. Did that mean he failed? His mind started to race and overflowed with thoughts, fidgeting with his sleeve. He felt a warm hand touch his arm, and glanced to the side, focusing on the red eyes. He felt like he could drown in the crimson… Red, the colour of passion, love. Intensity. As Ryota stared into Izuru’s eyes. They were so red, so intense..His heart raced and he jerked his head away to the side. He wasn’t scared to look at Izuru anymore, not frightened of him.. More scared that his opinion would change and Izuru would hate him. 

“I’m sorry that it didn’t work, I can try better next time, I’m sorry that I failed-” Ryota let himself start to ramble, before a soft hand cupped his jaw and tilted him to face him and before he knew it, soft lips were pressing against his, all the coherent thoughts in his mind disappearing in a single instant. 

Ryota’s eyes fluttered shut as he pressed against them. All too soon they were pulled away and Ryota managed to blink open his eyes and turn to look at Izuru again, almost certain his face was burning red.

Izuru had a very faint blush across his cheeks. Ryota stared at him in awe and shock. Izuru Kamukura, THE Izuru Kamukura… just kissed him.

They didn’t need another word said between them as Ryota surged forward, not wanting to miss his chance, and kissed Izuru again. He felt like heaven against his lips, his insides like jelly. A silent message was conveyed across their lips.

Thank you

Ryota laughed softly to himself, watching as Izuru gave the slightest twitch of his eyebrow. 

“I can’t believe you k-kissed me-!” The animator mumbled, unable to keep the smile off his face. Izuru leaned close, placing his forehead against Ryota’s. His lips quirked up into a very subtle, but soft smile. Ryota felt his heart beat fast at the sight, it was so genuine and made him feel warm and happy inside.

Izuru didn’t know how to properly express his emotions. He never acted impulsively, never in his life, but in that moment, he just did. He didn’t understand why. He didn’t understand why he felt like he could be himself, be free around him. Why so many times his emotions would run wild and he didn’t know how to keep them in check.

So he let himself smile and give Ryota a kiss. Because not knowing was okay. 

He let his hands cup Ryota’s cheeks, watching as the boy’s cheeks faded into a bright blush, remincist of a tomato. Izuru knew that Ryota was having a hard time suppressing his grin, after noticing Izuru smile. Maybe the animator wasn’t boring, after all. He would’ve never predicated that he would fall for Ryota.

“Ryota… Stout, strong.” Izuru murmured very softly. Mitarai looked surprised. “Yeah, that’s what my name means-” He said, smiling before chuckling. “I’m not very strong or stout, though.” 

Izuru shook his head a little. “You are strong.” he said quietly, pressing his forehead against the other’s boys. The light brown hair was a bit messy on his face. Ryota reached forward and touched the long, silky black hair. He ran his hands through it, stunned on how it was so soft. Until he finally answered. 

“I don’t think I’m strong..”

Izuru held his face, squishing his cheeks a tiny bit, totally not on purpose. “You are strong. You have persisted in making those videos for Junko, and you have managed to make me… Show emotion. Positive emotion. No one else has ever done something like that.” He said quietly. Ryota blinked owlishly at him, shocked and surprised.

“O-oh-” He said, blushing even further at Izuru’s words. Coming from his mouth, from his love’s mouth, they sounded so genuine and true, he couldn’t help but believe it. 

“Thank you for the video, Ryota. Thank you for showing me that... I’m not emotionless.” Izuru said. Ryota frowned. “You never were emotionless, Izuru. All of those times where you made sure I didn’t overwork myself, held me as I slept, gave me food, just looked after me in general… That proves you have emotions and that you care.” He said with a smile. Izuru stared at him, his face expressionless, before he looked down. 

“I wanted to take care of you. I enjoyed it.”

“You wanted to?” Ryota asked, a little confused. Izuru never really wanted to do anything.. Or, that’s what Junko said. But the more he thought about it, the more he realised it wasn’t true. Izuru liked to cook noodles, he could tell by the way he held himself up a bit straighter as he made food. He enjoyed reading books, Ryota remembered onc when Izuru wore glasses and he had a panic. He enjoyed playing games against him. 

He was the Ultimate Animator after all. He could pick up on these small details. Izuru nodded at him. “Yes.” He answered simply.

Ryota turned away, a burning question in his mind. “So, I’m guessing you.. Uhm..”

“Knew that you had fallen for me? Of course.” Izuru stated simply, staring holes into him with those intense red eyes. 

But he held a smile on his face. “It took me much longer to realise that I had fallen for you too, Ryota Mitarai.” 

“Oh-” Ryota’s voice cracked embarrassingly at the cheesy and cute comment.

“I-I see... “ He mumbled shyly, his voice squeaky. Then, he heard Izuru chuckle and his cheeks heated up more, focusing his gaze on Izuru’s tie. 

The soft laugh was a heavenly sound and Izuru had a very soft smile. 

“You are cute.”

Ryota’s face turned bright red, more than should be humanly possible as Izuru’s words raced through his head. He tried to form some actual words. When he finally was readying himself to speak and say “No you” lips were pressed against his. 

“Mmm..-” Ryota made a soft noise, eyes closing as Izuru kissed him again, sparks flying between them. Ryota moved into his lap to stay close. Izuru wrapped his arms around the animator and hugged him close, pressing a soft kiss. Ryota closed his eyes. In that moment, he made a choice.

A choice to spend the rest of his life with Izuru.

No more than 6 months later, with the world in despair, Izuru protected him. Izuru shielded him from the pure despair that took over their world. When everything was falling apart, Izuru made sure that Ryota was safe. 

Mitarai felt guilty. That was a fact that couldn’t be changed. Izuru tried his best to help him, making sure he didn’t watch the violent acts of the remnants. 

Ryota shut his eyes. He couldn’t believe what was going to happen. He was going to get married to the love of his life, in the middle of the world ending.

Somehow this crazy scenario made him smile as he walked down the aisle towards Izuru, who stood silently by the altar. It was in a broken down church. Junko was sitting in the front, looking like she was going to cry as she squealed. 

Ryota swallowed. He and Izuru were the only ones here not taken over by despair. What would he be like if he hadn’t met Izuru? Would he be in despair, like the rest of his class? Or would he already be dead? He forced himself to banish these thoughts, focusing on being happy. He would spend the rest of his life with the man he loved. 

Izuru had a singular blood red rose in the pocket of his suit jacket. He looked absolutely ethereal like this. His hair was flowing behind him and he blinked softly at Ryota, those red eyes intense. Mitarai felt everyone’s gazes on him, but knew with Izuru, he could just be himself. No one else mattered as they both said “I do” and slid the rings on.

Ryota stared at the ring on his finger. Izuru had made thm himself. The Ultimate Hope had a faint smile on his lips as he pulled Ryota in for a kiss. It reminded the animator of his first one, causing him to blush deeply. He ignored the wolf whistles around them.

Izuru pressed his forehead against Ryota’s, who was pretty warm due to his blush. 

“I promise you, Ryota Mitarai, I will protect you for the rest of my life. I love you.” Izuru said in a quiet voice. Ryota beamed, allowing himself to get lost in the happy moment as their lips collided again. This was love. They could get through all of this together. 

“I love you too..”

**Author's Note:**

> please leave comments and kudos for my fic this is the biggest thing ive written and im super proud! i doubt itll get much views cuz unpopular ship but eh im proud of it!!


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